Loving A Firefighter (Loving Series) (8 page)

“Thank you Mrs. Evans.”

“Call me Cheryl, please.”

* * *

After Chip had been in surgery for 9 hours and 45 minutes, the doors to the surgery suites opened and a weary nurse emerged, still wearing surgical greens, a mask pulled down.  “Reynolds family,” she called out.  The Reynolds’s stood and the nurse led the way to a small consultation room.  Mrs. Reynolds turned to Cheryl Evans, who had returned to the waiting area after visiting with Carrie in the recovery room and said, “Cheryl, please come with us.”  The three of them went into the small room.

“Your son is out of surgery and is in ICU recovery.  The doctor will be in to talk with you shortly.”

“Cheryl, how’s your daughter?”

“They did a
partial splenectomy, and sutured a lacerated liver.  She came through okay considering she was shot twice.  She was with Chip.”

“I hope her recovery goes well.  The doctor should be in any minute now.”

They thanked the nurse, and settled back to wait for the doctor, who came in ten minutes later.

He introduced himself and said, “
I’m Dr. Walters.  Your son is in pretty bad shape.  We removed two bullets, one is still lodged in his heart.”  There was a gasp from Mrs. Reynolds, who held tightly to her husband’s hand.  One nicked his spine, but we won’t know the impact of it.  There was one bullet in the liver that caused extensive damage.  We removed part of the liver, but it will regenerate and I don’t expect any impairment.  We’ll have to watch the heart function carefully.  It stopped twice during surgery but we were able to resuscitate both times.  We did not remove the bullet since that would have caused more trauma.  A neurosurgeon will be monitoring the spinal injury for any impairment.

He’s not out of the woods yet.  He lost a lot of blood and received several pints during surgery.  Here at Parkland, we believe in telling the family the true condition of the patient.  If your son makes it through the night, he has a fifty-fifty chance of recovery.  Our nurses are directed to
not sugar coat the answer, so if you don’t want to know how bad the situation is, don’t ask.”

“Can we see Chip?”

“He’s in ICU recovery and will be going into CICU when we’re sure he is stable enough to move.  You’ll be able to see him initially when they take him into CICU.  He’s going to be heavily sedated.  Then it’s ten minutes every hour and two visitors at a time.  Your son was in excellent physical condition and we got to him in fairly good time.  Eighty percent of patients with a bullet wound to the heart that show signs of life when they arrive, survive.  Cling to that statistic.  It’ll help give you hope.  He is getting excellent care.  Parkland is one of the best trauma centers in the country.  This where they brought JFK when he was shot.”

“But he died any way.”

“Yes he did, but he had extreme trauma to the head.”  Dr. Walters left the room, leaving a stunned family with the enormity of what had happened to their son and the possibility he might die during the night.

“Have you ever visited anyone in an ICU?” Cheryl asked the Reynolds.

“I don’t think so,” said Mr. Reynolds. 

“It can be a shock.  The patient will have a catheter in the bladder; I would imagine Chip will have at least two drainage tubes that will be draining blood, and sera.  There will probably be two IV’s, oxygen tubes and vital sign measurement leads.  More than likely he will be heavily sedated for several days.  They want to take as much load off the heart as they can.  You should be prepared for what you will see.  He won’t know you’re there either.”

A nurse led the Reynolds’s to the CICU where Chip was fighting for his life.  The nurse said, “Ten minutes only, please.”

Mrs. Reynolds caught her breath when she saw her son, unmoving with tubes disappearing under the sheets.  She could see the bloody discharge in the drainage tubes.  It looked as if the very life was draining from his body.  Tears streamed down her cheeks, smearing the mascara into black streaks down her face.  Her husband remained stone-faced in shock.  “Oh God,” whispered Mrs. Reynolds.  “Don’t take my boy,” she prayed.

She walked out of the room just as a nurse came in.  “The numbers on the monitor, are they good or bad?”

The nurse looked across the room and said, “They’re steady and that’s good.  They’re slow due to the sedation and that’s to be expected.  Right now, he’s holding his own.  He’s fighting and as long as he does that, he has a chance.”

“Take care of my boy, please.  Don’t let him die.”

“We’re giving it all we have.  We don’t give in easily.”

Mr. Reynolds walked out of the room, and put his arm back around his wife’s shoulder again.  “Come on honey.  You need to eat.”

“I don’t want to eat.  I don’t want to leave Chip.”

“It will be an hour before we can go back in.  We’ll let them know where we are.  We have to be strong for him.
”

* * *

Carrie’s eyes fluttered open, closed and reopened.  “Mama?”  in a thin and weak voice.

“I’m right here,
baby.  I’m right here.”

“Mama, how…how’s Chip?”

“He’s out of surgery, honey, He’s still alive.  The doctor says he has a chance.”

“What about Nathan?  Why’d he shoot us?”

“Nobody knows, honey.  He’s dead.  He shot himself.  He can’t hurt you anymore.”

“Mama, am I going to die?”

“No honey, you’re going to be fine.  They removed part of your spleen and sutured your liver.  You’re going to be all right.  They’ll probably keep you here about five days.”

“Where are we?”

“You’re at Parkland, honey.  Where I can keep an eye on you.  Chip’s here too.  I’ll watch out for both of you.”

“Mama, I
really do like Chip.  He’s so nice.”

“Well, you can tell him in a few days.  He’s in CICU now.”

“That’s nice.”  The eyes closed and she was sleeping again.

Carrie was kept on the surgical floor for two more days and then moved to a regular room.  The nurses had her up and walking with a sash around her waist and held by a nurse
, the day after the surgery.  She would begin therapy when she moved to a regular floor.

Cheryl brought some clothes to the hospital and
planned to sleep on a cot in the nurse’s lounge until Carrie was moved.  Each visit began the same way.  “Mama, how’s Chip?” 

The answer was the same.  “He’s still fighting, baby.  He’s not giving up.  His heart stopped two times during the surgery. He almost didn’t make it.”

“Mama, he saved my life.  He told me to run and then he shoved me out of the way and moved toward Nathan.  That’s when he got shot.  He kept moving and then was shot again.  He was protecting me.”

“He was shot three times honey. 
Once in the liver and once in the heart and one nicked his spine.”

“He was shot in the heart?”

“Yes, the bullet is still in there.  It was too risky to take it out.”

“Mama, when can I see him?”

“Not until he’s moved from CICU.  I’ll let you know.”

“Poor Mrs. Reynolds and Mr. Reynolds.
  They’re such nice people.  Chip took me to meet them.  She told me I was the first girl that he brought home in a long time.”

Carrie
’s mother visited her several times during her shift and was there when she was off shift.  According to the doctors and her chart, she was doing well.  She had been moved to a regular room on another floor the next day and would start therapy the next morning.  Barring any complications, she would be discharged in four days.

Cheryl checked and found his parents in the waiting area and went in to talk with them.  She knew his condition but she asked them about him anyway.  “The doctor says there are some slight signs of improvement, which is why they moved him.  He says
odds are looking better that he will survive.”

“How is Carrie?”

“The timeline they’ve given me is that I can take her home in four days.  She starts therapy tomorrow morning but she has been up and walking with assistance.”

“You must be so relieved.”

“Oh I am.  She’s all I have here.  Her brother has moved away so it’s just Carrie and me.  I don’t know that I could take it if I lost her.”

“I know what you mean.  Chip has an older brother and a younger sister and he calls himself the forgotten middle child.  He’s joking of course because he knows we care.  Our daughter made us grandparents a couple of weeks ago and he was proud of being an uncle.  He’s a special
, caring young man.”

“That’s what Carrie was telling me after she asked about him when she first woke up after the surgery.  That’s also why I’m up here right now.   She asked me to check on Chip.  She thinks he’s special too.  She told me last night
how much she liked him.  Don’t let her know I told you that.  It would add to the list of the times I’ve embarrassed her.  I need to get back to her with the word.”

“Thank you, Cheryl.  We appreciate it.”

“Would you mind if I brought Carrie up in a wheel chair to see you and maybe him?”

“Of course not.  By all means, do that.“

Back in Carrie’s room

“They see a slight improvement in his condition today, but he had a rough night.  His heart stopped the other night but they brought him back and they have him on a ventilator to help him breathe… I’ll be right back.”  She left the room and returned with a wheelchair after the nurse approved her plan.  “Come on Baby, let’s go for a ride.”  She wheeled Carrie to the elevator and pushed the button for the cardiac floor.  Once there, she wheeled her down to the waiting room.

Her face lit up like a Christmas tree when she saw the Reynolds
’s.  They stood and Mrs. Reynolds hugged her gently.  Mr. Reynolds smiled and put his hand on her shoulder.  “It is so nice to see you up and about.”

“Mrs. Reynolds,” Carrie began, her eyes brimming with tears. “I feel this is
entirely fault.  Chip didn’t even know Nathan.  He was protecting me.  He yelled for me to run when he saw Nathan had a gun.  I remember he shoved me out of the way and moved toward Nathan and was shot.  When Nathan shot me again, Chip went after him and grabbed him.  He was shot again.  That’s all I remember but the detectives told me he was shot twice more and then Nathan killed himself.  Nathan went ballistic when he saw Chip.  He was stalking me.  He thought it was Chip’s doing but I hadn’t even met Chip until after my apartment was set on fire.”

“Child, what you’ve been through!  It isn’t your fault.  Nobody told us any of this but Chip is like that. 
He’s gone into building looking for survivors.  He’s always been very protective of those he cares about.  It’s a wonder his sister was able to get married with him around.”

“Well, I care for him a lot and I’m just so sorry he got hurt protecting me.  I just got promoted at the TV station and Chip was going to help me find a new apartment.  I was treating him to dinner to celebrate my promotion.”

“You didn’t tell me you had been promoted,” her mother said.

“I just found out about it that day.  I’m going to be a field reporter and will get on-camera time.”

“Cheryl, it’s time for a visit.  Why don’t you take Carrie in, and we’ll wait here until you get back?”

“Are you sure?  That’s so nice of you, I’ll only stay a minute so you can get in,” Carrie said.

Cheryl wheeled her to the door and asked the nurse if it was okay to enter.  She had them gown and glove up and put a mask over their mouths and noses.  Carrie’s mother had prepared her for what she would see.  She wheeled her to the bedside.  Carrie stood, and placed her gloved hand on Chip’s hand.  She said, “Chip, it’s Carrie.  Thank you for saving my life.  Now you have to get well for me.  Hang in there, please.”  She squeezed his hand gently and thought she imagined a squeeze back.  It was her imagination.  He hadn’t  moved since before he was shot the third time.  Eyes overflowing, she said, “Please keep fighting and get better and I’ll be back as soon as I can.  I’m two floors down.  We’re going to go so your mom and dad can come in now.”

Carrie was crying like a baby when her mother wheeled her back to the waiting room.  She was so overcome with emotion she couldn’t talk.  Mrs. Reynolds came over and hugged her again and
said, “God bless you darling.  God bless you.”  All Carrie could do was squeeze her hand.

As they entered Carrie’s room, it was apparent someone had been in the room.  There were three huge floral arrangements on the table.  One was from the TV station.  Another was from the station manager and the third was from her supervisor, Mrs. Tompkins.  The note on her card identified who it was from and said, “Get well soon.  Call me when you feel like up to it.”

Carrie was apprehensive about the card.  She showed it to her mother and said, “I wonder if my new job is gone?”

“Surely not.”

“I might as well get it over with.”  She dialed a number from memory.  When it was answered, she said, “Mrs. Tompkins, please,” 

“Mrs. Tompkins, this is Carrie Evans.  The flowers are lovely, and I was going to call you anyway.”